


New World

by Lerya



Series: Challenges (outside of discord) [9]
Category: One Piece
Genre: Entering the New World, Gen, Grieving, Reflection
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-30
Updated: 2020-12-30
Packaged: 2021-03-11 01:54:15
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,818
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28427370
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lerya/pseuds/Lerya
Summary: Is it a new World because some people aren't in it anymore, or is it the New World as in a new adventure laying ahead for them. My reflection on Luffy and the Straw Hats entering the world - finding that the New World has quite a lot to offer them, even a reunion with those already behind the veil.
Relationships: Monkey D. Luffy & Mugiwara Kaizoku | Strawhat Pirates, Monkey D. Luffy & Portgas D. Ace & Sabo
Series: Challenges (outside of discord) [9]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1970032
Comments: 2
Kudos: 10
Collections: One Piece Bingo 2020/2021





	New World

With their second attempt to go into the New World actually succeeding, Luffy couldn’t help to be thankful for Rayleigh for training him in those two years. He was also thankful for all the other people who had trained his Nakama, to be sure they could go on more adventures together.

This 2 year break was the best thing they had done, to get stronger, and closer as a group – to make sure they would be able to make their dreams come true.

Looking back as their ship made its way down, towards Fisherman Island, Luffy also had to smile at Hancock, and the flying Fish riders, all people they had found on their way to the next adventure. People they got to meet, and become friends with, who wanted to help them all achieve their dreams.

As they submerged, Luffy couldn’t help but think about Ace, his oldest brother had been a member of a New World Crew for years, almost 3 years in fact. But then again, Ace had always been so strong, even as a child – so it made sense that the other became a part of the crew of the Strongest Man of the sea.

Thinking back about Ace, he smiled, he missed his oldest brother, both his oldest brothers – he was the only one left, and that hurt. Even if he didn’t want it too, he knew their loss would stay a scar on his heart. In the same way Belle-mére, Kuina, the Doctor, Ohara, Tom and the Rumbar Pirates would stay a scar on the hearts of his Nakama.

But that couldn’t, and wouldn’t, stop him from looking forward to what they would experience in the New World, where only the strongest of the Pirates roamed. Where Shanks was, somewhere, and were Ace, and Crescent-Stache, had roamed before…

Shaking his head, he had hoped to be able to share this with Ace, and Sabo, to see both of this brothers again on this side of the sea, to have adventures, all together, instead of roaming the New World separately.

Wiping a tear off his cheek, he noticed that the others of his Nakama were giving him some space, to mourn those who couldn’t be here with them on this adventure – the same could be said for their own Nakama, others who should have been able to see where they stood now.

Him missing his brothers, couldn’t take away from his Nakama similar losses. But this didn’t have to mean anything, this could still mean that they would go on new adventures, meet new people, and enjoy the memories they had with their precious people, even if those people were not with them, or went to the after-life.

He had to believe all of them were looking down of the Thousand Sunny and were there looking down on all of them. Laughing and enjoying the adventures the Straw Hats Pirates had while on their journey.

After all, this would be the start of their new adventure, in the last part of the sea still left mostly undiscovered, and unexplored. This would be the last part of their journey, and the final part to their final destination – Laugh Tale.

Which again, made Luffy thing about Ace, it was after all Ace’s father who made it to Laugh Tale first, and as such became the first Pirate King, the title Luffy wanted to each the last island, and claim that title for his own. Preferably with his brothers at his side, but he looks forward to doing so with his Nakama at his side, and their precious persons looking on from wherever they were.

Their short stop on Fisherman Island only showed them just how different the New World would be, in comparison with the Grand Line, or at least the first part of it. Seeing Jimbe again was something special, even if the tension between Nami and Jimbe was something that not all of them had foreseen.

Luffy, as expected, knew his Nakama would get over any problems they had with each other, together they were stronger, which Hody and his ilk found out – no one stepped in between the Straw Hat Pirates and stopped them from doing what was right.

No one in Paradise managed, and no one in the New World would, they travelled the Sea because they loved her, because they enjoyed being together en having adventures, nothing and no one would be able to stop them from doing that.

Now that they were leaving Fisherman Island and setting course to the surface of the sea in the New World, taking them towards their new adventure.

As they came out of the water, and the bubble surrounding the Sunny burst letting them see the sundown in this new sea. Enjoying what many before them had seen and experienced when they found out, what Roger most likely found out – that first time he did when he paved the way for all the other pirates to explore this part of the Grand Line.

Docking at the first island they happened upon, The Straw Hats embarked, trekking into the forest the island was filles with, to see just what they were up to, as well as see if they could catch some meat to cook for dinner.

Luckily, it seemed that the forests were filled with more than enough animals to serve as their dinner. Sanji, having seen as much, had gone back to the ship to start cooking. Thrusting the others to bring back some meat for him to prepare.

They made it into a game, and with all of them competing in bringing in the most meat. As expected Zoro and Luffy won, by a great margin – after all both of them, together with Sanju, had already been the strongest on the crew, with the two years away and training, this hadn’t changed.

Now that Sanji didn’t compete, they would only have 2 winners. The others luckily, accepting this, and just smiling at the great evening they had, enjoying the time spend together – finally feeling back at home surrounded by others who like them saw this little crew as their family.

As they looked around, they were reminded that some of their members had lost all of the other members that made up their family, others just had to leave them behind, and others didn’t have any to begin with.

The evening was finished with all of them enjoying the food Sanji had cooked them, as well as the presence of the others, making the end of the day a pleasant one, one where they all turned in, one after the other, in the bed they had missed these 2 years they had been apart.

As Luffy drifted asleep, it was with a smile on his face, one that lessened in disbelief at what he saw when he opened his eyes.

Ace and Sabo were sitting in front of him, a grin on both their faces, just like they used to have back on Dawn Island, when they were children. The same grin that had been on Ace’s face when he died.

A tear made its way over his cheek, this all seemed so lifelike, like they were really here, his bog brothers, both who had been taken from him, and their Nakama, too soon.

Reaching out a hand, he was startled to feel the flesh of Ace’s biceps, instead of it being smoke, or his hand just passing through his older brother. After all, they were dead, they couldn’t be here – not like this.

Ace chuckled, “this is the New World, Lu, a lot is possible here.”

Sabo nodded, “but you’re not going mad or anything like that. We’re still dead, no island can bring us back from beyond the veil. But it can give up these moments, on certain islands, to get a chance to talk to you again. To actually see what you have done with yourself, and your crew, how amazingly you grew since our childhood.”

Luffy looked down, “so none of this is real.”

Ace shook his head, “these memories we have here are real, but this is some in between, a way of us connecting with you – in a way we haven’t been able to, because we died, while you’re still alive.”

Biting his lip, Luffy waited one moment, to see if his brothers didn’t disappear on him. When they didn’t, he turned and wrapped his arms around them, pulling them both to him and into a hug he hadn’t had since he was 7 years old, on one of those last days they were all together. Before Sabo… Before Sabo was taken from them.

“I missed both of you so much, and I know this is some mystery spot, but that doesn’t take away that I can see both of you again, that I can hug you both, and that I know you’re both watching over me and my Nakama, to see just where we’ll get – we’ll get to Laugh Tale, and I will take your dad’s title, Ace.

But I, I thought I would never get to see you both again, not after Sabo’s ship got blown up, and Ace died protecting me from the Marine Admiral.”

Ace and Sabo both nodded, shuffling closer, wrapping their arms around them all, making their hug a tangle of limbs, which wasn’t made easier with Luffy’s rubber limbs. But none of them wanted it any different, this was something of a fond memory, them all hugging on cold night in their tree house, back when they were children.

To have a chance to do this, when two of them weren’t even on the same plane as their younger brother. Happy that the New World would let them have that.

When Luffy woke the morning after, it was with a wide smile on his face. The other boys were the same, even if Usopp and Chopper had tear tracks on their cheeks.

The girls were not any better, both Nami and Robin sported a smile, but tear tracks still on their cheeks and in their eyes.

At breakfast they all told each other about the dream they had.

Luffy shook his head, “it wasn’t a dream, it wasn’t totally real, but some islands in the New World can make things like this happen, give us a chance to see lost loved ones again, even after they passed.”

This had the kitchen quiet, all of them looking at their captain, Nami took her map and marked the island they were on – silently agreeing to come back here, and to tell all their loved once just what they had accomplished, and how they had managed to achieve their dream.

As they ate the rest of their breakfast, Luffy looked around and loved that all his Nakama had the same experience and discovered one of the wonders of the New World.


End file.
